History of the Crusades

the Crusades Episode 38 changing fortunes.

Hello again.

Last week we examined the aftermath of the Second Crusade

and it wasn't pretty. The count of Odessa was imprisoned. The entire

crusader state of the county of Odessa ceased to exist and fell under Muslim rule.

Then Raymond, Prince of Antioch, was killed in a battle,

leaving the principality of Antioch vulnerable.

Prince Raymond's wife, Princess Constance, was encouraged to remarry to ensure the Principality

had a male leader.

You may recall that Princess Constance was the daughter of Queen Melesend's

headstrong sister Alice,

and has perhaps inherited some of her feistiness.

At the time of Prince Raymond's death, Princess Constance is just 19 years old.

She has been married for 10 years and has four children. Not surprisingly, unlike the first time around, she wants a say in who will be her husband.

Unfortunately the bar is set pretty high.

Prince Riemont had been an unusually good looking man and a successful and charismatic ruler.

Finding someone of a similar caliber to replace him, who was also going to appeal to Constance,

was not going to be an easy task. to married off was King Baldwin of Jerusalem.

He had taken it upon himself to rule Antioch until Princess Constance married.

Geographically, the Principality of Antioch was the furthest crusader state from Jerusalem

and King Baldwin had his hands full already dealing with the aftermath of the failure of the Second Crusade in his own kingdom,

...